CHIP is Spike's best friend. He is a computer genius who can operate almost any memory bank set in front of him, including Teletraans I & II. Spike is sometimes envious of Chip's ability to alter and create new functions for computerized machines --often done with Wheeljack's help. Although his scientific talents are great, Chip is physically handicapped -- paralyzed from the waist down -- and must be confined to a wheelchair. This makes his especially vulnerable during Decepticon attack -- although his courage shines through in any desperate situation.

Contents

History

Canonical/Pre-MUX/Theme History:

Chip Chase in 1984

Chip Chase came to the attentions of the Autobots as a friend of Spike Witwicky and the whiz behind Dr. Alcazar's antimatter formula project. Though the Decepticons stole the antimatter formula, Chip memorized the data.

Chip has a remarkably advanced (or at least ridiculously expensive) desktop computer for 1984. It contains, among other things, a 16 Million color monitor (Chip's view of the Decepticons was no different than Prowl's), a microphone, dial-up networking, speakers, and a sound card that could interpret Prowl's speech.

Chip once tore a floppy disk apart with his bare hands. This may explain why Optimus Prime is keen to stay in his good books. His superhuman abilities shine when he correctly identifies Skywarp's missile is of the heat-seeking variety before it even does anything to suggest as such.

Chip is a graduate of Yale University, is able to survive acid rain ...

...is able to stand (despite the wheelchair) ...

... helped Wheeljack in bringing Devastator under Autobot control...
... and once saved the world by getting Thrust to shoot Teletraan I.

He once told a group of Autobots that "No one is really disabled as long as they have courage." If any human was an illustration of this, it's Chip Chase.

Logs

What-If Worlds

Chip Chase started out as Spike's best friend in elementary school. However, after Spike witnessed the murder of his mother in front of his eyes, he plunged into a deep, debilitating depression. When Spike was eventually institutionalized, Chip eventually formed a friendship with Spike's little brother, Buster.

In school, Chip eventually became a mentor for Code Buster, teaching him about computer code, which wove in with what Buster's father was teaching him. While Chip maintained occasional contact with Spike while he was in a mental hospital, Buster eventually formed a closer bond with Chip until Chip left for college.

Today, Buster is on the lam, after exposing the Joes for a plethora of civil liberty abuses. Chip publically assists on the Ark Project while continues to work in secret to help Buster in his continued quest to expose every liberty-robbing offense the Joes have continued to commit.